Chapter 33 - Fall

Kelsey didn't feel like going upstairs. She was frightened of what kind of monster would jump at her if she showed her face. She tried lying on the couch again to get some sleep but she just really couldn't get herself to peacefully rest. Mason's words rang in her head repeatedly, breaking every bits and pieces of her heart that was already shattered. She silently cried for an hour and when her sobs died out, she remained laying on her back staring at the ceiling.

She glanced at the wall-clock and it was only four-thirty in the morning. Giving up on the idea of sleep, she rose from the couch and went to the bathroom. She splashed her face with water to completely wake her and brushed her teeth. She patted her hair down and smoothened the crown of her head. Looking at her reflection on the mirror, she couldn't help by sigh by her unpleasant appearance. The bags under her eyes were more visible than ever, her eyes were puffy and the hint of painful tears left a red tint in her eyes.

Kelsey knew what she needed and it always seemed to calm her down. 'A stroll to the park, it is.' She thought as she grabbed the key from her pouch from last night and existed the door.

Since it was only four-thirty, it was still dark outside and the only visible lights were the ones from the posts and some stores that are 24-hours open like Shoppers drug mart. The condominium was in the city but it wasn't really directly out on the street. The condo was in a quiet, peaceful street that was a bit isolated from the noise and chaos of the city. It was placed beside a few houses and a couple of stores. But overall, the street was silent.

There was a park two blocks away from the condominium. Usually, Kelsey always felt terrified going out when it was dark. She didn't know why but at the moment, she didn't feel scared. In fact, she was determined to go out and walk more than ever. It was a bit chilly outside but she embraced the coldness of the breeze. Once she had reached the park, she sat on one of the swings and started swaying softly. She kind of missed the feeling of being a kid. No problems, carefree. She suddenly had the urge to go back in time when she used to played in the sandbox with her playmate.

"No, I said a castle, Ems! We have to make a castle!" Her five-year-old-self said to the cute, older boy playing with some old cardboard box.

"But I wanna build a car..." He whined in response as he continued folding the cardboard box into the shape of a car.

"But, but-" Kelsey tried looking for the right words to say. Frustrated with herself, she then started tearing up until tears streamed down her face.

The handsome boy was quick in his feet and wrapped his thin arms around her for comfort. "I'm sorry, Kace! Okay, we'll build the castle. Please stop crying." He shushed her as he shot her a smile. It wasn't just any normal smile. It was a smile that was so innocent, real, and sincere. A smile full of honesty and assurance and it brought comfort to Kelsey.

"Really?" Kelsey asked with her widen big round eyes, her lip pouted in an adorable way.

"Really. Let's go!" He answered as they started building the castle.

"I knew it was you." A husky voice announced snapping her out of her trance. She turned towards him as he sat down on the swing beside her's.

"What are you doing here?" She asked him with furrowed brows.

Brandon smiled at her and placed the plastic bag he was holding beside his face. "I did some shopping." Kelsey eyed the bag with scrutinizing gaze as if asking him what was inside. "It's cookies n' cream ice cream." He answered.

"You need ice cream at four-thirty in the morning?" She asked him with amuse eyes.

Brandon simply shrugged his shoulders and smiled. "What about you? Why is a beautiful woman like you out in the dark alone by yourself?"

"Just thinking. Needed some fresh air." She nonchalantly said and Brandon knew she didn't want to talk about it based on the tone of her voice. When the cool air blew, Kelsey shivered, now realizing that her arms were covered by goosebumps. Brandon noticed the obvious shiver and he quickly got up, placed the tub of ice cream on the seat of the swing and took his jacket off. He reached it out to her and she stared at the piece of clothing as if it was something out of ordinary.

"Don't worry, I've got a skin thicker than a cow." He joked as she reluctantly took the jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders, not bothering on shooting her arms on the sleeve-hole.

"Thanks." She gratefully uttered as she also stood up from the swing.

"Would you like some ice cream? I was thinking of making some crêpes for breakfast. Care to join me?" He offered before he cowered and regret on not inviting her later on. He took the plastic bag and wrapped it around his hand.

Kelsey shrugged and shot him a smile. "I could eat." She stated as she followed after him. They had small talks on the way back to the hotel. Just some random topics they could think of, like the weather, politics, and the random argument of why 'bananas' were named the way it was.

Brandon fished the keys out of his pocket and opened the hotel's restaurant. He switched on the lights and made their way to the kitchen. Kelsey helped him with the crêpes and found comfort in the kitchen as she started cooking. No matter what circumstances she was going through, the kitchen seemed to have a positive vibe on her.

It was already five-thirty when they finished cooking and have settled on the counter near the kitchen. Brandon kissed his fingers before announcing, "Bonne appétit!"

They dug onto the crêpes and Kelsey moaned in delight. "This is soooo good!" She sighed in amazement as the sweet flavour of the strawberries, bananas, Nutella, and ice cream erupted in her mouth.

Brandon only laughed and stared at her reaction. To say he was amused was an understatement. Kelsey placed another spoonful in her mouth and a bit of the ice cream remained on the corner of her mouth. Brandon chuckled and Kelsey glanced at him with a curious stare. "What?" She asked with her mouth full that it sounded like a mumble.

Brandon took the napkin beside his plate and dabbed it on the corner of her mouth. Kelsey was taken a back by his action and their eyes meet. They were just staring into each other's eyes and Kelsey saw a flash of admiration in his eyes. Not wanting to give him the wrong impression, she quickly snapped her eyes away from his and took the napkin from his hand. She carefully wiped the stain on her face and cleared her throat. "Thanks." She told him.

The tension grew in the room and the two were oblivious of the furious man watching them from the entrance of the restaurant. Mason wanted to go up there and punch him repeatedly. But he refrained himself once Kelsey pulled away from Brandon's touch. Mason wanted to see what was going to happen next. He needed to see if it was time to fire his employee.

"Even if you don't tell me what's wrong, I already know that it has to do with what happened earlier." Brandon stated, catching Kelsey off guard by the sudden topic. Kelsey only blinked at him, not knowing what to say.

"Kelsey." Brandon started as he spun the stool so that it was completely facing her. "Claris Morgan is someone from his past. She was a girl he was in love with before." He said as the words pierced in Kelsey's heart.

"But you're his present, Kelsey. You'll be his future." He announced bringing more sadness to Kelsey than comfort. She knew who she was in Mason's life. Mason had never failed to continuously rub it on her face. She was nothing but a girl who he picked up from the streets to pose as his wife. She was nothing but a sub, the last pick.

"You're beautiful, kind, caring." Brandon continued as he lifted her head by hooking his index finger under her chin. "And most importantly, you love him. And that's all that matters." He said as it finally sank in Kelsey's mind.

Love

She loved him. She loved Mason. She was in loved with him. She didn't want to admit it but with such a short time they had together, she fell for him. And she hates herself for that.

Kelsey couldn't contain herself anymore as she nursed crying. Brandon was quick to pull her into his warm and comforting arms and drew soothing circles on her back. He shushed her and filled her ears with encouraging ears as she poured every drop of tears from the pain she was feeling.

Seeing her in the arms of another man brought that burning sensation to Mason's insides. He didn't know what occurred to him but all he could see was red as he charged and pulled Kelsey away from Brandon.

Kelsey was caught off guard and lost her balance as she fell on the ground. She watched as Mason took Brandon by the collar and started to punch him. "Mason!" She screamed as she rapidly rise from her fall and tried to pry Mason from Brandon.

The two man landed on the floor and Mason kept of punching Brandon on the face. "Mason! Mason, stop it! Please!" Kelsey begged as she kept on trying to pull him away. With a few pushed, she finally had managed to stop him as Mason stood up and glared at Brandon on the floor.

Kelsey quickly wrapped her arms around Mason before he could change his mind and throw a punch at Brandon again. "Mason, please." She sobbed as she tightly hugged him.

"If you ever dare touch my fiancée again, I will not have any second thoughts to break your face!" Mason barked at Brandon who had a busted lip and a black spot forming on his left eye. "I will forget that we were ever friends!" He spat and that brought more tears into Kelsey's eyes. She had, once again, managed to break another relationship. First, it was Mason and his father. Now, it was Mason and Brandon. Mason took the jacket Kelsey was wearing that Brandon spared her and threw it on Brandon's face.

Mason pulled Kelsey with him as he stormed out of the restaurant. They quietly rode the elevator and Kelsey chose to stand on the far corner of the elevator away from him.

Once they were inside the penthouse, Kelsey sat on the couch and pulled the blanket she was using earlier. Mason paced back and front behind the couch and ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "How many times do I have to tell you to stay away from him?! Why do you always have to defy my orders?! Why do you never listen, Kelsey?!" He yelled at her and she felt her body shook as she sobbed quietly. "If I didn't come earlier, if I didn't interfere... Oh god! What could've happened, Kelsey?! Would you have kissed him?!" He accused her as her cry grew louder.

"This is exactly the reason why women are so infuriating! You try to hit it up with me and after you get what you want, you leave, cheat, betray me! It's so easy for you girls to use a wealthy man to benefit yourselves! You're all so self-centred and-"

Kelsey didn't know what changed, but at that moment, she could only feel anger and remorse towards Mason. She abruptly stood from the couch and faced him with a contorted face that Mason found awfully cute but frightening at the same time. He had never seen her this angry before and he wasn't prepared for what was about to come.

"I didn't leave, cheat or betray you, Mason!" She pointed out. "If that's what Claris did to you, then I'm very sorry. But please don't treat me as if I'm doing the same thing. I didn't ask you of anything, you came to me, Mason. You asked for my help and I'm keeping my words because I signed that stupid contract of yours. I agreed to do this not for my own selfish reasons but because I have a family who is solely depending on me! I'm here to do my job and that is to obey every single word that comes out of your mouth. You told me to stay out of your business, to stay out of your personal life and that's exactly what I'm doing. Brandon's my friend, Mason. He's a really good friend who just happened to be there when I need someone to talk to. I'm sorry if you feel like crap because your ex-girlfriend is back in town. But I'm begging you! Please, don't accuse or get angry with me for something that she did." She said completely out of breath as she rumbled on. Her chest was heaving up and down as if she just ran a marathon.

Kelsey looked Mason dead in the eyes and she couldn't help but wonder how and why she fell in love with him in the first place. He was the exact opposite of her 'dream guy.' But somehow, he had managed to win over her heart. She had sworn to herself that the moment her parents separated, she didn't want anything to do with love. But here was this man, came stumbling in with a contract and an offer of the century. And she completely fell for his charm.

Kelsey sat back down again in defeat. She sighed quietly before she spoke her mind out. "I think it's better if we end this now."